Bates Motel, Orphan Black, Vikings And Jack Black Headed To Comic Con

We're close enough to Comic-Con that those of us planning to attend are likely getting anxious awaiting the finalized schedule of panels and events set to take place at SDCC this year. In the meantime, networks and studios continue to make individual announcements for panels to be featured. Among the recent announcements are BBC America's Orphan Black, History's Vikings, A&E's Bates Motel and Yahoo!'s comedy Ghost Ghirls.

TVLine announced the news about Orphan Black this week, stating that the series will be featured in a panel at SDCC on Friday, July 19 at 7:00 p.m. in Room 7AB. star Tatiana Maslany, Jordan Gavaris and Dylan Bruce will be in attendance, along with series co-creators Graeme Manson and John Fawcett, who will participate in an hour-long Q&A and discussion about the thriller's first season. As to what fans might see from Season 2, as TVLine points out, the series doesn't resume production for a couple of months, so it might be too much to hope for some new footage, but fans might get some clues about what's ahead. An autograph signing is scheduled for Saturday, July 20 at 4:30 p.m. at the BBC America booth.

Next up, we have Bates Motel, which checks in for a panel at Comic-Con on Saturday, July 20 at 10:00 a.m. Set to be in attendance are the Bates themselves, Vera Farmiga and Freddie Highmore, as well as Max Thieriot, Olivia Cooke and Nestor Carbonell. Executive producers Carlton Cuse and Kerry Ehrin will join them on the panel to talk about the drama and hopefully what's ahead in the series' second season. There's no confirmation on where the panel will take place yet.

And then there's Vikings. History has a few things planned for their scripted series, which is making its Comic-Con debut this year. In addition to a panel, History is featuring a "Vikings Interactive Waterway" experience, which will offer a keepsake photo and an opportunity for fans to race miniature Vikings. As for the panel, stars Travis Fimmel, Katheryn Winnick, Clive Standen, Gustaf Skarsgard, George Blagden and Jessalyn Gilsig will be there, along with writer/creator Michael Hirst and History's Dirk Hoogstra. More details below:

7/19, 6-7 p.m., Top Level, Room 6A – VIKINGS PANEL – Stars Travis Fimmel, Katheryn Winnick, Clive Standen, Gustaf Skarsgard, George Blagden, Jessalyn Gilsig join VIKINGS Writer & Creator Michael Hirst and Dirk Hoogstra, EVP and General Manager, HISTORY for a discussion about the series and life during production.
7/18-7/20, 11 a.m. – 8 p.m. – VIKINGS INTERACTIVE WATERWAY – The experience includes miniature Vikings “ships” that fans can race on actual water, a Photo-Op area for keepsakes, and Lagertha-inspired shield maidens who will greet visitors. The waterway is located across the street from the Convention Center at 450 Second Ave., between 1st & 2nd Avenue.

History also has the first-ever VIkings comic book to unveil. It's written by series creator/writer Michael Hirst and will be given out to select fans attending the Vikings events. Check out the cover below!

And finally, there's Yahoo!'s Comedy series Ghost Ghirls. Yahoo! and Shine America promise the "ultimate paranormal experience" at SDCC this year. Jack Black will be returning to Comic-Con for the first time since 2005 for the panel for Ghost Ghirls, a comedy webseries that's coming to Yahoo! this fall and guest-stars Black. The series will follow the antics of two best friends, Heidi (Amanda Lund) and Angelica (Maria Blasucci), who work as paranormal investigators. Created by Jeremy Konner (Drunk History), each episode will focus on their misadventures as they try to solve otherworldly cases. That is, if they can manage to do that without getting in their own way. In addition to Black, the series will feature cameos by celebrities like Dave Grohl, Val Kilmer, Jack Johnson, Molly Shannon and Chason Schwartzman.

Here's the information for the panel, which will take place on Thursday, July 18.

The panel will take place on Thursday, July 18th from 1:00 PM to 2:00 PM in the Indigo Ballroom at the Hilton Bayfront Hotel. Joining Black on the “Ghost Ghirls” panel are co-stars/creators Amanda Lund and Maria Blasucci, director/creator Jeremy Konner and Erin McPherson, VP & Head of Video at Yahoo!. Comic-Con attendees will see an exclusive episode before it premieres on Yahoo! this fall and the comedic genius of the cast and creators to ghoul-out for an interactive panel session. Panelists will share with fans the inspiration for the show and answer questions from attendees.